Saturday

Jan 12, 2019 at 8:00 PMJan 12, 2019 at 8:03 PM

The only year Matt LaFleur called plays, his Tennessee offense finished 27th in the NFL in points scored and 25th in yards. I still think he's a good fit in Green Bay, the same way I praised the Bears for hiring Matt Nagy two days after his Chiefs became the fourth team in 80 years to blow an 18-point halftime playoff lead. LaFleur coached Matt Ryan when the Falcons reached the Super Bowl and coordinated under Rams wunderkind Sean McVay.

LaFleur should be great for Aaron Rodgers, who too often abandoned the short passing game and tried to do things the hard way this year. I love LaFluer's simple yet deceptive strategy to call plays that look alike at the start but end drastically different. “If you give Aaron time and you are unpredictable, he’s going to excel," LaFleur said on his hiring day. With LaFleur in Green Bay and Vic Fangio leaving Chicago for Denver, the Bears' biggest edge on the rest of the NFC North — coaching — took a big hit.

New NFL strategies

The Ravens turned into one of the most run-heavy teams in modern NFL history when they promoted rookie quarterback Lamar Jackson to the starting lineup, but the Chargers shut Baltimore down last week by using seven defensive backs on 58 of 59 defensive plays. ESPN's Adam Schefter tweeted that no other NFL team has used seven DBs for more than 18 snaps all season. I've been waiting for years for teams to use more six and seven defensive back alignments to slow pass-heavy offenses, but it's stunning to see it work so well against the running game. Baltimore's QB run heavy offense and the Chargers using seven defensive backs are two examples of the type of innovative coaching you rarely see in the copycat NFL.

DBs Packers missed

A large part of the Chargers' defensive success is due to safety Derwin James, who made All-Pro as a rookie. The Packers passed on James — the player I wanted them to take —when they traded down in the first round to get an extra first-round pick this spring. They also got an excellent cornerback in Jaire Alexander, but he's no All-Pro. Second-year cornerback Desmond King also made All-Pro for the Chargers. The Packers took the wrong King DB in 2017, taking Washington's Kevin King 33rd overall while Iowa's Desmond King, named the top defensive back in college football as a junior, lasted until the fifth round.